University of Chicago Undergraduate College Application Essays

On the South Lawn of the Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, WI stands a small building known by observatory staff as the Molleigh Dome. The 10-foot tall structure houses a computer-guided 12” Meade LX200 reflecting telescope. Entering the...

In an odd twist of fate, the health preoccupations of my elementary school years - oddball hypochondriac tendencies included - proved to be the unlikely catalyst to my deep interest in microbiology and contagious disease. Perhaps it was simply a...

I have never had a space to be a writer. In high school, whenever my class is given a creative writing assignment, my friends groan in unison. By the time their groans have quieted, I have already thought of a first sentence. At lunch, everyone at...

“Pop!"

I’ve heard about this unmistakable sensation at the time of injury, but never suspected it would ever make its way into my life; significant injury was a disease isolated to the ranks of professional athletes. Or so I thought.

Friday,...

Chemiscry is the study of what makes chemists cry tears of sorrow and joy. Students must complete the Proton Course and the Electron Course in order to receive their Bachelor of Science in Chemiscry. Additionally, they must fulfill the core...

The circumstances surrounding my family are defined by an absence of choice. At age 11 my abuelita dropped out of school to begin working as a full-time maid, a job she didn’t choose to have but had to have in order to support her family. At age...

My backyard is my studio, and the lush, green grass is my stool.

C.

With one powerful strum, my surroundings come to life: a gust of wind emerges; birds sing in harmony; dandelions dance in unison to my tune, frolicking through the sky. As I sway...

Hands shaking, I lifted the cover of my makeshift steamer.

All families have their own “thing.” Some have game nights; others have movie nights. My family has a time-honored tradition of cook-offs. These competitions are not like the casual and...

Falling asleep in class is never a good idea, especially when the teacher is your 86-year-old grandfather and the classroom is his bedroom. How did I get roped into giving up my limited, beautiful summer days for a fluorescent monitor and fourteen...

I’m the heart of a million questions in your math textbook. Universally cursed, universally appreciated. I’m immensely thankful to have the privilege of enjoying a timeless celebrity status -the king of the Hollywood of mathematics. Don’t roll...

An orchestra of color begins playing as the mantis shrimp unleashes its stunning arm from under its shell. It whips through the water at the speed of a .22 caliber rifle. A symphony of magenta and bronze. The blistering bubble it creates pops at...

Its hairy back flashed across my line of sight. From the perimeter of our campsite, its growls haunted my family. My mouth suddenly dried up, bladder full, and a chill ran up my spine. For a second, my eyes were locked in contact with the bear's...

The painting is enormous. Its carved golden frame hangs squarely in the center of a muted red wall in the Philadelphia Museum of Art. I lean in and read the information plaque to the right: Breaking Home Ties by Thomas Hovenden. Stepping back, I...

Stairs, my lifelong arch(itectural)-nemesis. Over my seventeen years we’ve, unfortunately, had many encounters and some heated “stair”downs. Even when nothing goes explicitly wrong, the experience is hardly pleasant. Of course stairs aren't solely...

In the corner of my room sits my grandfather’s diary: soft, well-worn, and cracked. The first entry, written in English, is dated “June 1st, 1970,” in the halting, elaborate script of a man accustomed to Bengali. The last entry, dated “November...

Dustin couldn’t read. He knew letters, but not words. I saw him throw his book on the floor, a tired copy of Little Critter, as I plopped down in bus 75 seat 11, the unforgiving Mississippi sun burning through the left-hand window. I looked over...

What do the wings of a flightless bird, a whale's pelvis, and a human's wisdom tooth have in common? They are all vestigial structures—organs or body parts of a species deemed useless. Like all vestigial structures, many perceive wisdom teeth to...

"As a Black man, you must work ten times harder than everyone to succeed."

My father's words hit home every time I commute to my predominantly white high school. I always lock eyes with several homeless people while riding the train.

They all look...